Stereotypes in the Media

Comments (0)

Transcript of Stereotypes in the Media

Gender Stereotypes in the Media: Women The media depicts a skewed representation of the average femaleWomen are more often presented in commercials, because they are seen as responsible for making everyday purchases. Men generally advertise cars, cigarettes, business products or investments, whereas women are shown rather in the commercials with cosmetics and domestic products.

In television shows and movies men were almost twice as likely to be shown on the job as women Studies indicate that nearly three-quarters of all female characters in sitcoms are underweight, and those that are overweight are often the subject of comments or jokes about their bodies made by male characters. One study found that 80% of these comments were followed by canned laughter.Most heroes and protagonists, particularly in prime time programming, tend to be male. How These Stereotypes are Harmful How Negative Stereotypes Affect Inequality What is a stereotype?A rigid and inflexible image of the characteristics a group attributing these characteristics to all individuals belonging to that group . Stereotypes form the basis for prejudice and discrimination.Stereotype threat—where certain characteristics can become self-fulfilling prophesies for those defined as having them Implicit associations-are other examples of how stereotyping affects us on a very personal level which can negatively impact our own self-image and performance and our interactions with others. Gender Stereotypes in the Media: Men Common male archetypes in the media:The Wounded Lion – This type is usually ‘broken’ in some way & has emotional/psychological scarring from an event/person in his past. Only through the help of the heroine can he be “fixed”. The Scoundrel – The classic ‘bad boy’ character that is either physically handsome or charismatic/charming. By falling in love with the heroine she can change them into a more mature and/or honest man. The Gentleman – Also known as the ‘knight in shining armor’ is always polite, even tempered, and knows exactly what to say.Men are socialized through the media around the values of strength and stoicism & and gives emotions the impression of weakness Examples Examples How the Media Perpetuates Stereotypes The Real World? The media partakes in a "vicious cycle"--repeating learned stereotypes and, in turn, reinforcing, validating and perpetuating them Over time, they begin to become part of the narrative itself—anticipated & typicalThe creation and circulation of stereotypes in the media function to maintain the status quo by defining the Other. Media stereotyping establishes the terms by which the Other can be defined and situates the Other within dominant discourse.Mass media it also affects people’s lives by shaping their opinions, attitudes and beliefs. It controls social life by invisibly transferring the dominant hegemonic ideologyHollywood studio films are the dominant's cinema. They positively represent and typically endorse the prevailing or dominant ideology and stereotypes Racial Stereotypes in the Media Examples According to the Entman-Rojecki Index of Race and Media, 89% of Black female movie characters are shown using vulgar language, while only 17% of White woman are. Black women are shown as being violent in movies 56% of the time compared to the 11% of white womenThe Black male, and oftentimes, the Hispanic male, are constantly betrayed as violent, angry and hostile, criminally minded, lazy, lacking intelligence, and engaging in illegal activity, mainly drug dealing or robbery. African-Americans have been portrayed using such despicable stereotypes as the mammy (big, mean, loud mother figure), the coon (lazy, unreliable buffoon), the buck (savage, ruthless brute),and the tom (submissive, loyal slave). Similarly, Latino-Americans, have been subject to prominent stereotypes: the comic (unintelligent, lazy buffoons), the Latin lover (oversexed, promiscuous seducers), and the crook (violent, law-breaking criminals) Examples LGBT Stereotypes in the Media Examples Examples In television shows as well as movies, when a homosexual character is present, it is often seen in a stereotypical fashionHomosexual male characters are typically formed from stereotypes of femininity; whereas lesbian females characters are typically formed from stereotypes of masculinityThe trouble comes when society allows for stereotypes to be made of the LGBT communityThe idea that they must be a certain way, otherwise they are not gay at all, shows that society will accept seeing homosexuality in media only of it presented in a way they best understand. References "3 Male Stereotypes in the Media by Geeky Gentleman." The Good Men Project (blog), July 05, 2012. http://goodmenproject.com/comment-of-the-day/3-male-stereotypes-in-the-media-by-geeky-gentleman/Cox, Erika. "Negative Images in the Media Lead to Racial Stereotypes." June 12, 2006. http://voices.yahoo.com/negative-images-media-lead-racial-stereotypes-43491.html?cat=9 Graham, Vernae, and Lorena Hernandez. "New Studies on Media, Girls, and Gender Roles." Last modified April 30, 1997. http://www.kff.org/entmedia/loader.cfm?url=/commonspot/security/getfile.cfm&PageID=14516.Jones, Mike, and David Gelb. Utah State University, "Homosexuality in the Media." Last modified 2008. http://ocw.usu.edu/english/introduction-to-writing-academic-prose/homosexuality-in-the-media.html."Portrayal of Women in the Popular Media." Global Status of Women. no. 9 (2009). http://worldsavvy.org/monitor/index.php?option=com_content&id=602&Itemid=1049 Ramasubramanian, Srividya. "Television Stereotypes and Affirmative Action." Communication Currents. no. 2 (2010).Ramirez-Berg, Charles. Latino Images in Film: Stereotypes, Subversion, Resistance. Austin, TX: Austin: University of Texas Press, 2002.Raskoff, Sally. "The Impact of Stereotyping." Everyday Sociology Blog (blog), June 11, 2012. Senghas, Sarah. " Racial Stereotypes in the Media." Yahoo! Voices (blog), May 23, 2006.Social Science Dictionary, "Stereotype ." http://sociology.socialsciencedictionary.com/Sociology-Dictionary/STEREOTYPE.The Sociological Cinema, "Stereotypes: A Fundamental Concept for Teaching Sociology." Last modified July 23, 2012.Wolska, Malgorzata. "Gender Stereotypes In Mass Media. Case Study: Analysis Of The Gender Stereotyping Phenomenon In TV Commercials." Last modified January 09, 2011.

Why do we stereotype? People often use stereotypes to describe and evaluate the behaviors of others.System justiﬁcation theory suggests that when people stereotype, they do so not to heal or preserve their mental selves, but to justify the social system, the social structure they are part of.Therefore, people use stereotypes to maintain their belief in a just world and to rationalize the status quoPeople use stereotypes to explain why some groups of people get so little, while others get so much, as a way to view the world they live in as fair.People stereotype because stereotypes help them to believe that the social structure they are part of is legitimate and justiﬁable